Piano Movers

A recent Wednesday, 11:41 a.m.: Kirby Lee Hammel and Jacob Alexander each took a deep breath and stretched their limbs like out-of-shape swimmers before moving a 300-pound upright piano into the back of their tiny Toyota pickup.
“That moment when we’re lifting the piano into the truck bed, I keep wondering if this is worth it,” Alexander said.
He and Hammel — who constitute the two-man rootsy blues and Americana band Clangin’ and Bangin’ — have done this more than 100 times in the past year. Hammel, 29, plays the piano that has to be lifted into the truck. Alexander, 26, plays drums.
An ad in Craigslist brought them together three years ago, and they’re hoping that someday they can make a living playing music. In the meantime, Hammel is an after-school child care provider and is working toward his elementary school teaching credential. Alexander, who just quit his job as a bartender, studies jazz at San Francisco State. He sees the irony in the number of classes he’s skipped so he can play with the band.
With their “as long as we can get the piano there” attitude, Clangin’ and Bangin’ plays three or four gigs a week, mostly on the streets of San Francisco. The drums also have to be secured in the pickup truck before they pull away from the little pink bungalow they share with two other musicians in El Cerrito.
“I think if the piano was 100 more pounds, it’d be iffy,” Hammel said.
He and Alexander have become accustomed to strange looks from other drivers as they make their way down the Eastshore Freeway and over the Bay Bridge. On this day, Hammel stretched his fingers in preparation for a three-hour performance at the Heart of the City Farmers’ ?Market in San Francisco’s U.N. Plaza, where they played their first gig a little more than a year ago.
Alexander clutched the wheel and checked his rearview mirror to make sure everything was still intact as they zoomed through the tunnel on Yerba Buena Island.
“I’m constantly worried about all of the equipment,” Alexander said. “The truck and the piano and the drums — it goes through so much beating that something is bound to go wrong.”
When they arrived, Hammel cleared pedestrians from the brick sidewalk to make way for their musical delivery. On three, they slid the piano to its resting place in the center of the market. A few moments later they started playing.
“At least one time every gig, we have someone that comes up to us and just raves about how awesome it is that we dragged out a piano,” Alexander said.
Although the out-of-place piano is what attracts people’s attention, it’s the music that holds the audience’s interest and gets the tip jars filled.
“Some of our heroes and some of the best musicians played on the street,” Hammel said. “It’s the dream. … It’s what you play music for. You kind of lose yourself and let it go. It just feels really good.”

Photo: Mike Kepka / The Chronicle

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Kirby Lee Hammel and Jacob Alexander unload their upright piano and drum set at the Heart of the City Famers' Market before performing as the musical duo know Clangin' and Bangin' in San Francisco, Calif. less

Kirby Lee Hammel and Jacob Alexander unload their upright piano and drum set at the Heart of the City Famers' Market before performing as the musical duo know Clangin' and Bangin' in San Francisco, ... more

Photo: Mike Kepka / The Chronicle

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Kirby Lee Hammel and Jacob Alexander revel quietly after successfully moving their upright piano into the back of their pickup one more time. Together they form the band Clangin' and Bangin' and have moved the piano and drum set 100 times in the past year. less

Kirby Lee Hammel and Jacob Alexander revel quietly after successfully moving their upright piano into the back of their pickup one more time. Together they form the band Clangin' and Bangin' and have moved the ... more

Photo: Mike Kepka / The Chronicle

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Loaded up with gear in the back of the pickup, Kirby Lee Hammel and Jacob Alexander drive to the Heart of the City Famers' Market in San Francisco, Calif.

Loaded up with gear in the back of the pickup, Kirby Lee Hammel and Jacob Alexander drive to the Heart of the City Famers' Market in San Francisco, Calif.

Photo: Mike Kepka / The Chronicle

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Headed for the Heart of the City Farmers' Market, the Clangin' and Bangin' upright piano crosses the Bay Bridge in a pickup truck.

Headed for the Heart of the City Farmers' Market, the Clangin' and Bangin' upright piano crosses the Bay Bridge in a pickup truck.

Photo: Mike Kepka / The Chronicle

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Kirby Lee Hammel warms up his fingers in the truck on the way to gig in San Francisco.

Kirby Lee Hammel warms up his fingers in the truck on the way to gig in San Francisco.

Photo: Mike Kepka / The Chronicle

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Jacob Alexander navigates his loaded pickup truck through the Heart of the City Famers' Market in San Francisco, Calif.

Jacob Alexander navigates his loaded pickup truck through the Heart of the City Famers' Market in San Francisco, Calif.

Photo: Mike Kepka / The Chronicle

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Clangin' and Bangin' prepare to play at the farmers' market in San Francisco, Calif.

Clangin' and Bangin' prepare to play at the farmers' market in San Francisco, Calif.

Photo: Mike Kepka / The Chronicle

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Olive Spohn, 2, listens to Clangin' and Bangin' at the Heart of the City Famers' Market in San Francisco, Calif.

Olive Spohn, 2, listens to Clangin' and Bangin' at the Heart of the City Famers' Market in San Francisco, Calif.

Photo: Mike Kepka / The Chronicle

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With the band Clangin' and Bangin', Kirby Lee Hammel bangs on his rickety upright piano at the Heart of the City Famers' Market before in San Francisco, Calif.

With the band Clangin' and Bangin', Kirby Lee Hammel bangs on his rickety upright piano at the Heart of the City Famers' Market before in San Francisco, Calif.

Photo: Mike Kepka / The Chronicle

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With the band Clangin' and Bangin', Kirby Lee Hammel focuses on piano playing at the Heart of the City Famers' Market before in San Francisco, Calif.

With the band Clangin' and Bangin', Kirby Lee Hammel focuses on piano playing at the Heart of the City Famers' Market before in San Francisco, Calif.

Photo: Mike Kepka / The Chronicle

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Tips are collected in the Clangin' and Bangin' tip jar at the Heart of the City Famers' Market in San Francisco, Calif.

Tips are collected in the Clangin' and Bangin' tip jar at the Heart of the City Famers' Market in San Francisco, Calif.

Photo: Mike Kepka / The Chronicle

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With the band Clangin' and Bangin', Jacob Alexander plays drums at the Heart of the City Famers' Market before in San Francisco, Calif.

With the band Clangin' and Bangin', Jacob Alexander plays drums at the Heart of the City Famers' Market before in San Francisco, Calif.

Photo: Mike Kepka / The Chronicle

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Otherwise known as Clangin' and Bangin', Jacob Alexander and Kirby Lee Hammel sit with their equipment at the Heart of the City Famers' Market in San Francisco, Calif.

Otherwise known as Clangin' and Bangin', Jacob Alexander and Kirby Lee Hammel sit with their equipment at the Heart of the City Famers' Market in San Francisco, Calif.